Remember Me
by MemoryOfNothing
Summary: No relationship grows without thorns in its path. Years into their friendship, Korra and Asami are torn from each other. With her world falling to pieces around her, Korra must find a way to restore balance to the world and save the one person she truly loves. [Korrasami][Rated M for violence, language, and suggestive themes]
1. Chapter 1

**Prologue: Fallout**

_"No Korra! It's not okay! He's your father!"_

_"You don't get to tell me what to do with my father, Asami!"_

_"Korra, please... just listen to what he has to say... Listen to what I have to say..."_

_"You know what? No! You, of all people out there, have no right to butt into my business like this!"_

_In an instant, Asami's gaze froze; the fiery edge to her glare vanishing in an instant, replaced with a haunted, almost hollow look. Seconds later, the raven haired woman turned her gaze aside._

_A nerve had been struck, and Korra knew that she had gone a step too far..._

_"... I... Asami... I'm-"_

_"I'm just trying to stop you before you make a mistake that you will regret for the rest of your life." Asami interrupted before she turned hard on her heel and stormed away at a brisk pace. Even if her head was held high, it was easy to tell from the way that her shoulders sagged that the woman had been hurt by such a comment._

_"Asami wait!" Korra cried out after the fading image of her partner, but still, Asami's figure continued to fade into the distance..._

_"No! Asami!... Come back!"_

_"Asami!"_

Korra jerked awake in her bed, her hair matted against her forehead and dull with perspiration. It was another dream. That same dream she had been having ever since Asami had left for her business trip with some foreign dignitary...

Above the avatar, a small stream of light shone brightly through a crack in the drapes covering one of the windows in her room. The early orange blaze of dawn had finally broken the darkness of night across Republic City. How many days had it been since Asami had left? One? Two?... How many days until she would return... One... Two.. Too many...

Heaving a groan, the avatar allowed herself to fall back onto her pillow as she brought her knuckles up to her eyes and rubbed away the lingering vestiges of sleep. With a sigh, Korra shifted around on her bed, using her forearm and bicep as a makeshift pillow for her head. Her thoughts lingering on that of her now absent friend... companion... _partner..._It had been a few days since Asami had left Republic City for some business opportunity in a foreign land. _New Opportunities..._ as Asami put it.

"Pfft... more like a waste of time..." Korra growled to herself. She might have been the avatar, but Korra was still impatient as ever. Things like this just seemed to drag on forever, and things were only made worse by the fact that she couldn't do anything to make them go faster.

Matters were only made worse for Korra, knowing that those things she had said in her dream were the words that the two women had parted ways with. There wasn't a hug and a kiss and a gentle "See you soon", but instead only spiteful words and bitter tears. At the time, Korra simply couldn't quite bring herself to think straight. Looking back on the things she had said, the avatar knew that she taken things a step too far. It was something she had a nasty habit of doing. She was naturally hot-headed in matters like these. More importantly, she didn't get defensive when she was wrong, she got _aggressive_... And this time, Asami had been on the receiving end of it.

Grumbling to herself in clear annoyance with the things she had done, Korra finally kicked off her blankets and rolled out of bed. Not much point in loafing around in bed and letting her mind mull over her mistakes now, right?

* * *

><p>A few minutes later, Korra emerged into the Sato Estate's expansive back yard. It was a strange place to live in, even if she was only staying at the estate temporarily. For the most part, Korra only stayed there simply because Asami lived there. Only now, seeing as that Asami was away on some trip, the place seemed oddly empty even if Mako and Bolin's relatives lived in the place...<p>

Thankfully enough, before the avatar's mind could wander back to that topic she was so desperately trying to avoid, a familiar body barreled straight into her, knocking her over before place more than enough sloppy licks all over Korra's face.

"Ah! Hey! Ahahaha! Aww, c'mon Naga..." Korra giggled as her polar bear dog gave her a typical _good morning_ greeting. The avatar returned Naga's enthusiastic greeting by giving the polar bear dog a familiar pattern of pats, strokes, and rubs across her face.

"There, there, who's a good girl..." Korra questioned with a smile, "Now will you let me up?"

Finally obliging her master's request, Naga backed away, allowing Korra to rise back to her feet. Yet, before the avatar got too comfortable, Naga made a slight whining sound, the polar bear dog turning her head around and sniffing the air as though she were looking for another person too.

"... Sorry Naga... Asami's still on her trip..." Korra sighed, her thoughts dampened once again when she was reminded of the things that had come to pass.

Not quite able to understand what Korra was saying, Naga merely made another whining sound and gave Korra another lick on the cheek, clearly trying to cheer her back up.

"Alright! Alright, I'll stop making that face, jeeze!" Korra laughed again, finally pushing her cloudy thoughts away and focusing on her giant, furry companion.

Seemingly satisfied, the polar bear dog merely trotted behind Korra before sticking her nose between the avatar's legs, swiftly moving forwards and then tossing her head upwards, flipping Korra onto her back.

"Okay, Alright Naga!" Korra laughed, unable to resist her pet's charms. "You know if you wanted to head out for a walk, you could have just _told_ me..." She continued, teasing her friend ever so slightly.

Naga merely growled in response and started trotting away towards the rear entrance while Korra continued teasing her.

"It'll just be us for today then, Naga!" Korra finally spoke up after she felt like she had teased her companion enough times. Just the two of them...

Just like old times...

* * *

><p>Asami gaze bored a hole into the metal ceiling above her. For the past hour, she had nothing more than the drone of an airship's engines to keep her company. It was a tediously long trip, but the raven haired woman did her best to keep a positive outlook. The possibilities in this business venture seemed promising at least. And yet, Asami couldn't quite shake that lingering sense of doubt from her mind. It was a nagging sort of annoyance that constantly reminded her of the sour note she and Korra parted ways with.<p>

Thankfully enough, before her mind could flash her with those vivid memories of Korra yelling at her, the airship's captain emerged from the pilot's cabin.

"Miss Sato, we have just entered our nation's airspace. We will be on the ground within the next hour..." He respectfully addressed Asami.

"Thank you..." she replied with a nod of her head.

With that, Asami returned to her seat and fastened the buckle around her waist, and of course... her mind wandered back to those thoughts of that one special avatar that always plagued her mind...

"... Korraaaa..." Asami sighed to herself with a measurable amount of exasperation. Had she really been too tough on the avatar? The raven haired woman shook her head slightly and turned her gaze down to the tips of her boots. No... all she had said was that Korra should have at least listened to what her father had to say, and yet Korra had been so vehemently opposed to such an idea. What was it that Korra's father wanted anyways?

Again, Asami sighed as her mind came up blank yet again. It was all a great mystery to her... Why was Korra so upset? What was it that her father had said to put such a rift between father and daughter? Annoyed with the amount of things that she clearly didn't know, Asami bit the edge of her lip and cast her gaze out of the closest window. Her eyes were immediately met with a brilliant crystal blue ocean that seemed to sprawl out for eternity. When she looked downwards, her gaze found a similarly vibrant shade of green. Foliage belonging to some sort of tropical trees...

Despite the fact that she was descending into a tropical paradise, Asami merely leaned back into her chair and shut her eyes, waiting for that inevitable bump that would signal their landing.

Her thoughts still focused on that of Korra, Asami merely renewed her determination to figure out what it was that had caused such a fallout between Korra and her father. She knew better than anyone else how much the split had hurt her back when her own father committed his crimes, and seeing such a thing start to happen between her closest friend and her family was simply agonizing to watch. Whatever it was, after this business trip was over, _that_ was going to be her top priority.

Asami wasn't about to let Korra go through the same pain she had to experience so many years ago...

At last, the gentle jostle of a soft landing shook Asami out of her brief internal reverie. They were here at last, and she needed to have herself together if this business plan was going to work. As the doors to the ship opened, Asami's eyes were met with the vibrant hues of a tropical paradise. The colors of life all sprung out at her, shining brightly beneath the tropical sun.

Never the less, Asami shut her eyes, took a deep breath, and steeled her resolve before finally taking her first step out into paradise. Little did she know, as she took those fated steps down the airship's boarding ramp, she was creating the very perfect storm she was trying to prevent...

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

Hello everyone, I hope you enjoyed the prologue to the next story that I am writing. Those of you who may be following me here from Behind the Veil of Power over on the league of legends page, welcome back, and I hope that you will enjoy what I have planned. Next chapter should be out within the coming week. I'll be keeping this A/N a little bit short seeing as that this is only the prologue for what is to come. It's good to be back, and I hope to see you all in the chapters to come.

-M


	2. Chapter 2

**Paradise Lost**

Asami swiveled her head from right to left; her eyes taking in the beautiful sight of the tropical island paradise she had just stepped in to. Around her, the bright and vivid greens of towering palm trees danced in the salty, ocean-filled breeze. It had a rare sort of... _pacifying_... effect on her, the smell of the salty air simply a pleasing and relaxing scent, especially compared to the mechanical smell of Republic City.

When her feet finally touched the dirt floor beneath her, Asami found herself promptly greeted with the sight of two rather official looking dignitaries, both of which were dressed in long, white and yellow gowns and adorned with small bits of jewelry. It was an impressive dress code, seeing as they were only there to greet the raven haired woman...

"Miss Asami Sato..." The foremost individual greeted her as he folded his hands together and bowed deeply to her, "It is an _honor_ to finally meet you."

Giving the man a warm smile, Asami returned the bow before she spoke up.

"Please, the honor is mine..." She said with a measure of grace and poise to her actions and tone. "This island nation of yours is so... beautiful. I can't remember the last time I saw such a place. It's almost as if the people, technology, and land have all come together and exist in harmony..."

"Ah... as expected of the genius inventor. You were able to notice in such a short time." The other dignitary spoke up. Asami turned her eyes to the speaker, finding a black haired woman with warm brown eyes smiling back at her. "Please, Miss Sato, allow me to introduce ourselves. I am Lynn Hua and this is my friend, Xin Zhang. We are here to show you about our island nation."

"Please, Miss Sato, this way..." Xin continued, stepping aside and gesturing with a single hand towards a rather familiar sort of automobile. Indeed, it was a model similar to that of the sato-mobile. "There is much to see in our city, and though we do not need to get down to business right away, I fear we may not have enough time to give you a taste of what our nation has to offer if we... _dally around_... shall I say?"

Asami was about to protest that she was being given a tour of the capital city, seeing as she was impatient to get back to Korra and resolve that problem they were having, but the raven haired woman quickly reminded herself as to why she had journeyed so far away from Republic City... She had a job to do...

"Ah, well, do lead on then..." Asami replied courteously. Internally, she was slightly annoyed with the formalities, but then again, such went the ways of business practices. With that, Asami climbed into the back seat of the car while Xin and Lynn took the ones up front. Within minutes, the trio were travelling down a smoothly paved road with beautiful scenery whizzing past them at a good speed. Before Asami could let her mind wander about again, however, she found herself quickly engaged in another conversation.

"So... Miss Sato, how much do you know about our island nation?" Lynn inquired with a curious tilt of her head.

"Please, Lynn, Asami will do just fine..." The raven haired woman pressed with a polite smile. "This is a tropical island that has very temperate weather all year around." Asami continued in a neutral tone, "Which makes growing crops and such relatively easy, and also fits with the fact that the primary export here is... Pineapples. But what surprises me more is how you have managed to integrate your technology without spoiling the natural environment. Most industrialized cities out there are either polluted or their advancement of technology has driven nature out of its place..."

"Ahh, yes, that is most certainly something that our country can boast." Xin replied as he kept his eyes on the road. "Take for example the road we are travelling on. It may not be as comfortable to use as those wonderfully paved roads you have at Republic City, but these roads were created using a very environmentally friendly material. Furthermore, the way we mapped the roads through this island do so in a way that does not impede on the natural habitat."

"Does that not impeded efficiency though?" Asami inquired as Xin took a pause.

"Oh most certainly, the routes may not be as direct, but at the end of the day, it is a sacrifice that was willingly taken. You yourself said that our nation was very pristine, did you not?" Xin inquired, doing his best to sound polite, but clearly a little bit defensive.

"To be sure." Asami hastily replied, "It's an admirable thing you all are doing here..."

"You do bring up a valid point though, Miss Sa- Ahem... Asami." Lynn spoke up, "The way that our island nation was built up, we did _not_ have the best of efficiencies in mind. And as such, we must find other ways to make up for this. As I'm sure you know, this is a big reason why we were so eager to invite you and your incredibly bright mind here."

"A transportation system..." Asami spoke up, "You want something that can maintain the environmental integrity of your country while keeping your nation in tune and in step with the developing world."

"Astute as ever, Asami..." Xin replied from his seat. "Yes, that covers it quite nicely actually. We have a need, but we do _not_ have a solution. We considered using air bison as a means of transporting goods from one place to another, but ultimately, we are limited by the amount the creatures could carry. Not only that, but the climate is hardly suited for such a cold climate creature. No... In this case, we cannot use some form of animal. We need a new sort of technology that will help us here..."

Giving the issue some measurable thought, Asami's lips pressed into a thin line. To say their request was a difficult one would have been quite an understatement. Finding harmony between industrializing yet at the same time preserving the island's natural integrity was the equivalent of walking on a very _very _thin line. She had her doubts as to whether more could be done, but the raven haired woman kept her thoughts to herself for now.

"So how do the people coexist around here?" Asami inquired, neatly changing the subject to avoid her having to voice her doubts on the pressing matter they were facing. "From what I've seen so far, it looks like everyone gets along just fine. I can't even tell who is a bender and who isn't a bender just from observing them..."

"Actually, Asami..." Xin spoke up before clearing his throat slightly, " There _are no benders here_..."

"No benders? So this entire island is inhabited by non benders?" The raven haired woman inquired dubiously. In her entire life, she had never once seen an entire nation that was without benders... Small villages and towns perhaps, but never an entire nation. "How is it that you keep it that way? We have no control over who is born with bending and who is not..."

"True enough, Asami..." Lynn continued off where Xin had started, "But in a society like ours, something like bending isn't necessary..."

"But-"

"Bending is a dangerous thing, Miss Sato... You yourself have seen what it can do, and I am more than certain that you know what kind of rifts the ability to bend drives between citizens of any city, nation, or country. It's never fair." Lynn interrupted with a lengthy explanation. Her stern look suddenly softened into a lighter smile. "But rest assured, Asami, we do _not_ force people into giving up their bending should they wish to come and live here. It is an entirely voluntary process."

"But you wouldn't allow them to live here if they didn't give it up." Asami stated carefully.

Both Xin and his female counterpart seemed to hesitate after that. It seemed that Asami's words were very much on point with whether or not benders were welcomed within their borders.

"To be sure, Miss Sato, we do not forcefully impose our beliefs on others." Xin finally spoke up, "But should a bender wish to move to our nation, they must be willing to forgo one thing for another."

"And such a thing is nothing more than discrimination." Asami shot back, a little bit more heated than she usually would have. Apparently having spent so much time with Korra and the rest of her bender friends had made her a little bit defensive...

"Call it what you will, Miss Sato, but know that our nation is _the_ nation with the lowest crime rates out of all nations that exist." Xin replied back firmly.

Asami was about to continue arguing by countering with the fact that nearly all of her close friends were benders, but opted not to press the point any further. She could already see the rift that was growing between them, and if she wanted a good business relationship with these people, pressing such differences would have only made things harder for her. For now, this was just something they would have to agree to disagree on...

* * *

><p><em>Hours Later<em>

Asami sat at the end of a long, carved, wooden table. In her company, several royally garbed figures stood in attendance, ready to serve and cater to her needs. It was an impressive display of royal power, seeing just the sheer number of servants assigned to help her, but what was more surprising was the manner in which they were all dressed... _They were all dressed like royalty_..

Shutting her eyes and allowing herself a small breath, Asami merely returned to the glass of wine in her hands, swirling the crimson fluid slightly before bringing the glass to her lips and taking a small sip. In an instant, the piercing flavor of the wine flooded her mouth. To say the least, the people of this island nation certainly didn't skimp out on the dress of their servants, and even less so did they skimp out on their wine. Simply put, the taste was _exquisite_. Even if Asami wasn't one who had a particular fondness of wine and other alcoholic drinks, she knew that this wine was among the best she had ever tasted.

Before Asami could allow her thoughts to wander too far, however, the doors opposite to the position she was sitting in finally creaked open, allowing a single, balding, and rather wrinkled man to step out from behind the large double doors. He might have been balding, and he might have been dressed rather frivolously, but Asami would have recognized that face _anywhere_...

"Uncle... _Ben_..?" Asami couldn't help but gawk at the relative she hadn't seen in so many years.

In an instant, the aging man who had just entered fixed Asami with a growing smile until a stupidly large grin was plastered across his features.

"Ahahaha! Asami, it's so _good_ to see you." He crowed, waddling forwards until he had reached Asami's seat. Holding his arms open, he absolutely beamed at his relative, clearly pleased to see her.

Rising from her seat, Asami did her best to return Ben Sato's hug, though the weight he had piled on during the time the two hadn't seen each other made it rather difficult for the woman to get her arms around him. A pat on the back had to suffice instead...

"I..." Asami started, clearly still quite surprised that it was her uncle that she was meeting, "I... didn't expect that it would be _you_ that I would be meeting with." She finally managed to finish.

Ben's grin didn't diminish by the slightest of bits as he let out a hearty chuckle.

"Well you see, Asami..." The rounded and aging man began, "I wanted to give you a little nice surprise!"

He paused for a moment, giving Asami a good look through his twinkling eyes.

"And from the looks of it, I succeeded very much!" He finished with another laugh.

Asami merely took a breath and shook her head, using a few trade tricks to get herself back into composure. Certainly, seeing her uncle here of all places was a tremendous surprise, but still, she was here on business... not on some family reunion tour.

"Uhm... Ahem!" The raven haired woman finally sounded, clearly indicating that she wanted to return to the matters at hand. "So this project you have for me?" She pressed ever so lightly, hoping to nudge her uncle in the right direction.

Thankfully enough, the rounded man seemed to understand her intentions and situation completely.

"Ah... yes... Happy greetings aside, we did come together to discuss business now, did we not?" He stated rhetorically. "I trust Lynn and her associate have given you the short version of our issue, yes?"

"The bare bones of it, yes." Asami confirmed, though she deliberately waited for her uncle to press further before giving her true input.

Ben Sato leaned back in his chair as if he was waiting for the woman's explanation. It wasn't until a few moments later that he caught his slight blunder.

"Ah- Ahem! Well, may I... ask to what your thoughts might be?" He finally managed to ask.

Asami swirled the bit of wine in her glass once more before setting it back down on the table without taking another sip. She kept her expression neutral as she considered how she could best word her uncle's options.

"The issue that you have brought to me is..." Asami began slowly, "... Complicated, if I were to put it mildly."

"But surely you were able to come up with a-"

Asami halted her uncle's question with a raise of her hand, clearly indicating that she wasn't quite done yet.

"I have dealt with modernizing other places before." The raven haired woman continued, "All of which I will say that we were able to meet with varying degrees of success, but they were _all_ successful none the less."

"Please, Asami, I know more than most other people how much you and your father have accomplished... I just... I'm just out of options right now and I have nobody else to turn to... You are the best and probably last option I have!" Ben Sato urged, his voice conveying a sense of desperation.

Keeping her emotions out of the equation as best she could, Asami merely nodded in acknowledgement of her uncle's qualms. "The issue with what it was that you are asking me, however..." She finally stated after a few moments, "... stems from a multitude of different restrictions that you are placing on the project."

Asami paused for a moment to take a small, minuscule sip of wine. "The problem with this task is not any one restriction in particular. It is a combination of them. In any solid, grounded continent, the solution to your problem would actually be relatively easy. An underground transportation network... A subway..." Asami stated, looking pointedly at her uncle for recognition.

Being the astute man he was, he quickly nodded, hope seemingly glimmering from his eyes.

"But the issue with this is... _it's an island_..." Asami pressed onwards, "Like any island, the topography of the land is constantly changing. In a year, we could see shifts in the ground and soil anywhere from millimeters of change, all the way to meters!"

She paused for a moment to allow the weight of her words to sink in.

"And a change of that magnitude would spell disaster to a subway system. Even if the system was built with flexibility in mind, there simply isn't any current way to make the railways adaptive enough to handle the stress of a changing landscape. That system would be usable for maybe a year, and then it would have to be shut down for another year and remodeled to match the new landscape..."

Asami took another pause while she allowed her uncle to digest what it was she had given him thus far. When it seemed like he had gathered his thoughts well enough, she pressed onwards again.

"So if that is out of the question, then what else is there?" Asami inquired rhetorically, "The other option would be to move to the skies. Airships... Perhaps for the ground, use an above ground train system... But why are these not options?"

"They would ruin the aesthetic integrity of the island..." Ben Sato answered with a sigh. "In order to truly modernize our system, we would have to fill the entire sky above the island with airships... It's not as though those airships are capable of carrying a large amount of weight..."

Before Ben Sato could be pushed too far into his seemingly hopelessness, Asami finally gave him the glimmer of hope he was so desperately searching for.

"So, if updating this nation's network to a more advanced level is _not_ an option..." Asami spoke up, causing her uncle to immediately snap back to attention, "What is it that is left for us to do?"

Ben Sato blinked at her for a few seconds, clearly completely lost as to what it was Asami was suggesting.

"_A different revenue source_." Asami finally answered, partially revealing what it was her solution was.

"A different revenue source?" Ben Sato repeated skeptically, "Such as what? We already grow so very many tropical crops, what else is there that we can grow or export?"

"Not an export, Uncle Ben..." Asami replied, meeting his eyes with a sharp look of her own, "In fact, technically not an import_ either_..."

"Tourism." Asami finally spoke up, "Tourism would provide the funding your country needs in order to continue growing, or to the very least, maintaining its current economic growth. There would be a marginal increase to the strain on the current transportation system, but the income would be far more than enough to offset that loss."

Ben Sato seemed to give the idea some solid thought as he lifted a finger and tapped it pensively on his chin.

"Hmmm... tourism..." He mused, his eyes clearly clouded in thought.

"Which in turn would lead to more productivity from existing businesses, be that restaurants, activities, sights..." Asami helped the man along, "You wouldn't need to build anything extra aside from perhaps a slight expansion to your port city. Perhaps a small increase to the number of vehicles on the roads... But herein lies another issue..."

"And that problem might be...?" Ben Sato asked with a sigh.

"Benders." Asami answered with a pointed look, "You will need to allow benders to visit your country."

In an instant, Ben Sato seemed to stiffed up. A dark look crossed his features as he narrowed his eyes at Asami.

"Benders... Are a dangerous kind of people..." He stated, sounding none too keen on the idea of allowing benders into the island nation.

"Benders are no different from us aside from a single ability they were _born_ with!" Asami shot back, clearly annoyed with this blatant sort of racism.

"And that single ability makes them chaotic! Disruptive! They think they are better than everyone simply because they can bend!"

"That is _NOT_ true! My best friends are benders! My... My _girlfriend_ is a bender!" Asami practically roared back, uncharacteristically defensive about the topic.

"... You... _what..._?" Ben repeated, his eyes seemingly widening with horror.

"That's right, I'm dating a bender." Asami stated bluntly, sounding almost like a rebellious child.

"Asami you... How _could you_?" Ben demanded, "Benders... Benders are evil! Look what they have done to the world! Look at it! Look what they did to me! They took away my sister! Your MOTHER! EVEN YOUR FATHER!"

"You think I don't know that?!" Asami yelled back, "You can't blame all of them for the actions of a select few! That's not fair at all!"

"And you think it's fair that my sister burned to death at the hands of some filthy fire bender?" Ben yelled back.

"Do _you_ think it's fair for _you_ to blame all the rest of the world that is filled with all types of people for that?" Asami retaliated, "Mother _never_ would have wanted people to hate each other!"

"Don't you put words in my sister's mouth! My reasons are entirely justified!" Ben stated furiously.

"I'm not putting words in her mouth, I'm just-Ah!" Asami abruptly cut out as a searing pain cut through her skull. Steadying herself on the table, the raven haired woman blinked and tried to get her eyes to refocus, but everything suddenly seemed blurry.

"Asami...? Asami? Are you alright?" A voice called out to her.

The raven haired woman tried to focus on the source, but again her brain didn't quite seem to register it. Blinking hard, the woman brought her fingers to her temples, massaging them and attempting to get the splitting pain her skull to stop.

But that was hardly the beginning. The pain was getting worse.

"Guards? Help!" A panicked voice sounded from closer to the raven haired woman. If she had the strength or focus to turn her head, she would have found that her uncle had rushed to her side and was desperately trying to call for assistance.

At last, Asami dropped her head and slouched in her chair, her skull suddenly feeling incredibly heavy. Everything seemed so hazy around her... It was dizzying and disorienting... Then her eyes settled on it.

The wine...

There was something else in it...

"Uncle... Ben..." She murmured helplessly as her vision blurred to darkness.

Alas, Asami's uncle was no longer paying attention to his collapsed niece. The moment he had called for help, the guards from both outside and inside the room had moved swiftly to restrain him.

"Stop this madness at once! What do you think you are doing!? She needs help! Help her!" The rounded and aging man bellowed. Yet, despite his orders and calls, the guards refused to listen to him. With two burly guards restraining him, he was far from able to defend himself let alone Asami.

"Unhand me you fools!" He continued barking, struggling to free his pudgy body from the grasp of the guards.

Before he did much more, however, the double doors behind him creaked open, and a robed figure swept into the room. Ben Sato craned his head to catch a glimpse of the intruder, but all he caught was the dark shape of a tall figure before a bag was roughly shoved over his face.

"Get this thing off of me! I am Ben Sato! What on earth are you- OOF!"

Before the man was able to finish his pointless babbling, a fist connected with his large stomach, knocking all wind out of the rounded man.

"Package secured sir..." Sounded a voice to the right of Ben Sato.

"Good. We move now." Came a darker, much more sinister sounding order.

"Package? What Package!? I am no package for you! I am refuse to be your hostage!" Ben Sato yelled from the darkness of the bag covering his face.

In an instant, the sound of footsteps swept closer until Ben could practically feel the air of another person standing very close to him.

"You have my thanks, Ben Sato..." The same rough voice sounded, "You played the fool so very well... And my thanks for riling her up as well. It allowed the poison to spread much faster through her body..."

"You! UNHAND ME THIS INSTANT! YOU!" Ben shouted furiously.

With that, the robed figure swept away from the aging Sato and moved to Asami's unconscious form.

"Her beauty is very much that as described..." he commented darkly.

"Sir, what should we do with this one?" inquired one of the men holding down Asami's uncle.

"He comes with us for now." The robed man replied, "Perhaps he will prove useful to us at some point. But if that is not the case... _then he can always be discarded._"

* * *

><p>Author's Notes:<p>

Hello readers, thank you for taking the time to read through the first chapter of this story. If you have any comments and critiques for me, please do not hesitate to share them with me. As far as where the story goes from here, I can only say that this is the start of many things to come. I do want to avoid spoilers after all, but I will say that in order for Korra and Asami's relationship to grow even more than it did in the original LoK series, a few things will be torn down and then rebuilt again. Thank you all of you who have supported this story thus far, and I hope to see you all in the chapters to come.

-M


	3. Chapter 3

**A New Journey**

_"No Korra... It's not okay..."_

_"Korra... please... just listen..."_

_"Korra..."_

_"Korraaa..."_

_"KORRA!"_

"Korra... Korra! You're burning them!"

"Huh? Oh! AH crap!" Korra yelped, abruptly bending water from a nearby sink and sending the fluid flying into her pan. Steam billowed forth in a huge cloud as the burning mess in the avatar's pan simmered down, leaving little more than a smoldering black heap and a large mess...

Grumpily, Korra sighed and poked the black pile of mush in the pan. It definitely wasn't the first time this had happened. But it most certainly was the first time it had happened twice while cooking the same thing in the same sitting...

"Korra... my dear... What is wrong?" an kind, but worried voice sounded from behind the avatar.

"Oh... it's uhm... it's nothing, no big deal." Korra dismissed the woman's concerns, doing her best to appear as normal as possible, but of course failing miserably.

"Come, come, Korra... you've burned a meal before, but you've never burned the same meal twice in one session..." The elderly woman pressed, clearly not fooled at all by the avatar's attempt to feign normality, "You can tell old Yin here what it is that is bothering you..."

"Well... I... Uhh..." Korra continued to hesitate.

"Korra, dear... I have seen two generations of my children, it isn't very hard for me to tell when something is on a young one's mind..." The elderly woman continued to push.

"I... Just haven't been sleeping well..." The avatar finally muttered in a tone that was barely audible. It was almost as if she didn't want Yin to hear her answer to the woman's question.

"Dear, dear, Korra..." Yin merely smiled warmly at the young woman, "It's not common for you to sleep restlessly now is it? You know I may be old, but even my old ears can hear you snore sometimes!"

Korra's cheeks reddened slightly beneath her darker complexion as Yin prodded fun at her tendancy to snore whenever she caught restful sleep.

"Besides, I've seen Asami try to wake you up a few times when you take a nap!" Yin continued on, oblivious to the way the avatar's cheeks seemed to be reddening by the second. "It's like that poor Asami is trying to wake up a rock!"

Unfortunately for the avatar, however, Yin's teasing words only brought her mind to the true source of her rather poor sleep... Asami...

Noticing that the other party's gaze seemed to have disappeared into the distance, Yin turned her head back to Korra with a more serious look of concern written across her features.

"Korra dear..." Yin repeated for what seemed to be the hundredth time, "What is it that is really bothering you?"

"It's..." Korra started, but paused again, more concern and worry written across her face.

"Come now Korra, you know I will listen..." Yin pressured yet again, using that gentle and warm smile of hers to urge the avatar forwards. At last, her efforts paid off.

"It's..." Korra paused before finally heaving a sigh, "It's just that Asami was supposed to return two days ago... _Two days_!"

Yin's features brightened into a warm smile upon realizing that the avatar was merely missing her loved one and perhaps anxious for her quick return.

"Oho that's very faithful of you Korra..." She commented, "I'm sure she will be back soon, perhaps she just had to spend a few days... doing her business?"

"Yeah... maybe..." Korra grumbled, but her features didn't brighten at all, "But that doesn't change the fact that she hasn't called at all nor has she ever been late like this... The least she would do is let me know what is happening..."

"Oh Korra... It's perfectly normal to feel lonely and anxious when your significant other is away..." Yin chuckled with her aging voice, "Believe me, I would know!"

"It's totally not-!" Korra started but halted halfway through her sentence. "Okay fine, maybe a little bit..." The avatar finally admitted, "But I'm just not comfortable knowing that she hasn't said a single word or called or left a message or _anything at all! _It's just not like her to go completely silent like that..."

"Well, if it truly bothers you that much, you are always at liberty to fix it." Came the elderly woman's reply, "You _are_ a young one after all..."

Korra was about to issue a rather heated retort when she suddenly blinked and tilted her head slightly with though. Yin had a point... She most certainly _could_ fix it!

With a smile suddenly brightening her features, Korra hastily shoved the disaster of a meal that was still in her pan into the trash before quickly scrubbing the item free of any debris.

"You're right, I can fix it!" Korra repeated aloud to the aging woman. "In fact, I think I'll catch the next airship to the island this afternoon!"

Shocked that the avatar was seriously considering her suggestion, Yin only blinked and opened her mouth wordlessly; sounds refusing to emerge from her mouth as Korra quite clearly intended to go through with this.

"I... Well... Alright then Korra, just remember to be care-"

"You're the best, Yin!" Korra interrupted, catching the elderly woman in a warm, squeezing hug before releasing her and sprinting off down the hall.

"-ful..." Yin finally finished as the avatar vanished around a corner. Letting out a small resignated sigh, the elderly woman merely allowed herself a small smile.

"Ahh... the wonders of youth..." She murmured to herself. "It's a shame she's going to miss out on my specialty meat buns!"

* * *

><p><em>Hours Later...<em>

Per usual, packing her bags for a small trip proved to be a very easy task for Korra. The avatar always did travel light after all. What was a little bit less travel sized?

The two people that insisted on tagging along with her...

From that point on, the avatar had something that looked like a permanent scowl written on her face as her two male companions, brothers, laughed, joked, and talked the entire way from Asami's house to the Republic City Air Station.

"Ugh! Why are you guys coming with me again?" Korra finally growled, interrupting a seemingly comical conversation between her two friends. Of course her grumpy demeanor earned her a startled gawk from both men.

"Because Yin told us where you were going?" Mako replied in a rather lousy attempt to come up with a good reason that he didn't quite have yet.

Korra's scowl only seemed to deepen.

"Oh c'mon Korra! It will be just like old times!" Bolin spoke up in his characteristically cheerful and overly dramatic voice. "Think about it! It's the reunion of the Fire Ferrets!" He finished with a dramatic wave of his hand as though he were envisioning such a title being written on a huge sign in the air.

"And what, all the other times we ended up together didn't count as _the reunion of the Fire Ferrets_?" Korra questioned back with a roll of her eyes.

"Look Korra, we just want to help. Asami is our friend too." Mako interjected, "We might not be _those_ kind of friends, but she's important to us all the same as she is important to you. If things really come down to _that stuff_, I promise I will give you two the space you need."

Needless to say, Korra still didn't seem to keen on the idea of having Mako and Bolin with her especially after the fight she had with Asami, but when Mako gave her reasoning like that, it was a little bit hard even for her to say no. Turning her head to Bolin, Korra gave him a pointed gaze as if demanding to hear a promise from him on the matter as well.

"Wha- Ow!" Bolin sounded as Mako elbowed him in the ribs. "Oh! Oh yeah! Don't worry Korra, I promise me and Pabu will stay out of your way!" he hastily spoke up, holding Pabu out in front of him as if the ferret would agree to the terms as well. Then again, that same gesture seemed to be more of a way of using Pabu as a shield against Korra's sharp gaze.

Letting out a breath of air that quite clearly displayed her continued resistance to their attempts, Korra merely clenched her jaw and, for once, held her tongue from pressing the point any further. Just as her patience began to near its limits, however, the voice over the loudspeakers in the docking area finally blared to life.

"_Boarding call for flight 253A to Harmonia Island. All passengers please report to docking port A4"_

In an instant, the scowl on Korra's face vanished and she sprang to her feet, clearly impatient to get under way. Within seconds, she had rushed ahead to the boarding gate where, remarkably enough... Nobody else was there...

"Uhm..." Korra mused as she stared at the woman standing by the gate. "This is... the flight to Harmonia Island, right?"

Clearly startled at hearing the sound of another voice, the woman jumped slightly before fixing the glasses on her face and staring back at Korra; equal surprise quite clearly also written across her features.

"I-uh-ahem! Ah yes, this is the gate." She hurriedly spoke up, "Flight... uhm... 253A bound for Harmonia Island..."

"There's... Nobody else here." Korra commented dubiously.

"Oh, yes. That's quite normal actually, you see-"

"Harmonia Island has a strict policy on visitors, Korra." A voice spoke up from behind the avatar.

Korra turned around to find Mako and Bolin standing behind her. The former seeming none too impressed with the way Korra was ignorant about such things.

"Well excuse me, mister officer." Korra shot back in a huffed up tone

"Korra, do you even know where you're going?" Mako questioned, sounding increasingly annoyed with Korra's behavior.

"Look, I'm going to where Asami went. Some island in the middle of nowhere and is called a tropical paradise." Korra shot back, sounding equally annoyed.

Thankfully enough, before Mako could press more questions onto the avatar, Bolin grabbed his brother by the arm and whispered in a loud yet hushed tone.

"Psssst! Mako! I like the happy Korra better! Can we not make her angry!" Bolin hissed, repeatedly glancing between Korra and his brother.

Clearly more annoyed now than ever, Mako finally just tossed his hands up in surrender before closing his mouth and speaking no more.

"Rightyho!" Bolin declared abruptly in a majestic sounding voice, "Onwards to Harmonica Island!"

"Ugh.. Harmonia..." Mako corrected him.

"Harmonica!"

"Urgh! Bolin, are you even listening!?"

"You know, one of my _best_ friends knows how to play the harmonica!"

"Bolin..."

"It's so awesome! It's all... Wheee whooooo wah wah!-"

Korra groaned as she left the two brothers behind and handed her ticket to the woman at the gate and proceeded up the boarding ramp towards the airship. Without a doubt, this was going to be a _long_ trip...

* * *

><p><em>Many Hours Later...<em>

"I dunno Mako, maybe she's just going through one of those normal avarty meditationy thingies..."

"Really Bolin? Muttering in your sleep while repeatedly tossing and turning like that with a cold sweat on your forehead and being unresponsive to the outside world?"

"Okay, but still, she's a little bit different-"

"She's having a nightmare, Bolin. There's nothing else to it." Mako interrupted, yet again sounding annoyed with his brother.

"Yeah, but should we like... wake her up? Or you know try something other than just shaking her? Oh! I've got it! We throw a bucket of cold water on her face! That works every time!"

"Bolin, weren't you the one that said you preferred it when Korra _wasn't_ mad at you or us in general? Throwing a bucket of water in her face is a sure-fire way to piss her off!"

"But... But!-"

"I get it. You just want to help her. That's how you are." Mako interrupted a second time, only this time he spoke in a much kinder tone. "But sometimes, there's just some things that we shouldn't butt into. Maybe she's having one of those premonition things that avatars get all the time, I don't know..."

"Hey! You just said she was having a nightmare! Now you're saying she's having an avatar experience!"

Unknown to the brothers, Korra's restless tossing and turning in her chair had finally come to an end; the dark skinned woman's eyes finally creaking open, somehow managing to look more exhausted now than they were prior to her falling asleep.

It was the dream again... The dream in which the two had gone through their argument, ultimately leading to Asami leaving the avatar. Everything was the same as before, except for one single thing... _Asami's eyes_...

What used to be a brilliant hue of emerald surrounded by a pure, untainted white had become a blazing hell of red surrounded by a void of black. It was as if gazing into the eyes of her partner was like gazing into the very maw of chaos. Every second in which she stared seemed to make the world around her slow; her body would refuse to move and her limbs would feel as though they were glued to her sides. Dread would overwhelm her as a sickening sense of evil filled the pit in her stomach...

Why...

_Why...?_

Asami was her friend... she was her _soulmate_... What was it that was driving her to feel such dread upon gazing at the other which was supposed to only bring her joy? Why did this sickening sense of evil fill her when she dreamt of her partner? _Why did the dread feel so very familiar..._

Heaving a heavy breath, Korra finally brought her hands to her eyes, doing her best to rub away the vestiges of sleep and exhaustion that plagued her eyes. No matter what she thought or how she tried to analyze it, her dream quite simply _didn't make sense_...

"... Korra..."

"Korra, you alright?" A voice finally shook the avatar out of her reverie.

Numbly, the avatar blinked before turning her head towards the source of the voice. Her eyes settled on Mako's handsome features, concern subtly written on his face.

"... Yeah... just a..." Korra sighed, "Yeah..."

"You were... well... looked like you were having a bad dream..." Bolin spoke up, the usual carefree cheer gone from his voice, replaced with something that was closer to worry.

Shaking her head to dispel the lingering effects of her nightmare, Korra quickly did her best to disguise the things that clearly continued to bother her.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just had a rough bit of sleep that's all." She insisted, not entirely sure why she felt so uncomfortable with sharing the nature of her dream with the two brothers.

"Are you sure? I mean you were-"

"Yeah. I'm fine. Thanks." Korra cut off the younger of the two brothers; her tone unusually edgy and rather agitated.

Bolin clearly wanted to press the issue, but a hand from Mako stopped him from pressuring the avatar.

"We're always here for you, Korra..." Mako spoke up, "... You know that will always be the case."

"... Yeah... Thanks..." Korra murmured back in a tone that neither of them could probably hear.

-_bzzzt-_

_"Attention all passengers, we have begin final landing preparations for our descent into Harmonia Island. Please return to your seats and prepare for landing"_

_-bzzzt-_

"Just can't help but get a bad feeling about this..."

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Notes:<strong>

It's been far too long since i have had enough time to sit down and write a chapter for my stories. I do apologize for this and I thank you for bearing with me. There's a few too many breaks in this chapter for its length in my opinion, but I did need to advance the plot on a timely manner in order to get to the really good stuff. I don't know when it is that I will have time to write another chapter for this story, but hopefully it doesn't take as long as it did for this one. As always, thank you all for your support of this story and I hope to see you in the chapters to come. If you have any comments of criticism for me, please do not hesitate to share them.

-M


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